corlis
The whiteness filled the space in an unsettling way. No windows, no dark corners, no escape. Only a bright, steady light poured over the high walls, as if time itself had been stripped of meaning.
Lion Marin garow sat on the cold metal chair, his hands bound behind him.
His facial expression showed confusion, but not without pride.
Behind the glass wall, Hammer gun stood silently watching him. There was no rush to enter.
Hammer gun was a man in his early thirties, with short, fine silver hair.
Dangling from his neck was a pendant in the shape of a small, faded black lantern, gleaming faintly in the dim light, a symbol whose meaning only he knew.
He wore a long, heavy leather coat the color of coal, open at the chest to reveal a finely-woven light armor over a dark shirt.
His gray trousers were thick and practical, and his high boots struck the ground with the rhythm of someone who waits for no one.
Hammer slowly turned, responding to the sound coming from behind him. Gareth stood there, arms crossed and eyes as cold as ice.
Hammer said in a low, irritated voice: "What are you doing here? You know I can't stand the sight of you, mercenary."
Gareth leaned against the wall, replying with sarcasm. His words came out serious due to his rough voice: "As if I'm here because I want to see your face or hear your awful voice. I'm just following orders."
He lowered his head slightly, then added: "Prince vortex is the one who assigned me to oversee the interrogation—and to serve as the link between the investigation unit and the council."
A heavy silence fell between them, before Hammer pressed his lips together and turned his back to him again, saying: "Then stay out of my way."
Hammer pushed the metal door with his heavy hand, and it opened with a sharp sound that pierced the silence.
He stepped inside slowly, his eyes locked on the man sitting in the center of the room.
His steps stopped one meter away from garow. He stared at him for a long moment.
Then, with a single stride, he closed the distance. He leaned forward, placed his palm on the chair, and said in a low but charged voice: "Lion Marin garow."
Hammer said the name as he slowly circled the chair, his tone a blend of mockery and contempt. "Who would have thought I'd one day be in an interrogation room with a member of House garow?"
Lion Marin garow stared directly at Hammer with his brown eyes. His voice was sharp and steady, despite the restraints and the treatment: "I told you... The garow family would never do something like this. These are nothing but slanders."
Hammer raised his hand and slammed it down hard on the table. It shook, and the sound echoed through the white room like a slap.
"Slanders?" he repeated slowly, as if the word itself disgusted him.
He leaned forward slightly, his gray eyes burning with the look of a tiger cornering its prey: "Then tell me, why was your family's
He stepped back, turned his back as if disgusted by the sight of Lion's face, and continued in a heavier voice: "Can you answer that, sir. Lion garow? You're not being tried for some family feud… this is a capital crime. The queen's assassination. The abduction of the crown prince. The only reason your heads are still on your shoulders is that we don't yet know whether the prince is alive… or dead as well."
Lion's jaw trembled, and a bitter anger spread across his face.
He raised his head slightly, then his voice burst out violently, his eyes gleaming with a mix of rage and helplessness: "This is a conspiracy, planned with utter wickedness by vortex! Everyone knows of his greed for the crown, and everyone knows about the tension between him and the queen.
We were the only family to support her publicly, we stood against him, and that's why he hated us!"
He struck the armrest of the chair he was bound to, then his voice dropped suddenly, as if something inside him broke:"I still... can't believe she's dead. How could it happen so suddenly?"
Hammer gun shook his head slowly, as if trying to shake stupidity out of the air.
A faint, lifeless smile formed on his lips, carrying nothing but quiet disdain.
Then he spoke in a low, venomous tone, mocking without raising his voice: "Oh… a conspiracy. How convenient it is for nobles to hide behind conspiracies when palace walls start to crack."
He took a step toward the table, leaned forward as if about to whisper a secret, but said coldly and sharply: "If there were a grain of truth in your words… then Nile would be here, facing us himself."
Lion's jaw muscles tightened as he stared at Hammer like a man fighting with his eyes. Then he spoke in a voice trembling between fury and disbelief: "Do you really believe that Nile would kill the queen?"
He leaned forward slightly despite the restraints: "Don't you have even the slightest doubt? The tiniest shred of reason telling you something here doesn't add up?"
Lion's final words came out heavy, his eyes shining with a mix of anger and sorrow.
For a moment, Hammer didn't reply.
He just breathed slowly, turning his face to the side as if what he heard had pierced through his mask of coldness.
He sighed, then said in a heavy tone: "I know Nile … I know him well. But I don't know what's going on in his head right now. People change, Lion. Knowing someone… isn't the same as knowing what they're capable of."
He moved slightly, placed his hands on the table, and leaned forward with his body, his gaze cloudy, as if replaying buried faces and events in his mind.
Then he added, with a sharper tone: "Your family rose quickly. From commoners to nobles of the realm. no, even the top noble house. These rapid leaps can breed a burning hunger for more. And what comes after glory and influence? The throne itself."
He let his words fall like the weight of an accusation: "Maybe Nile, as the prince's guard, no longer wanted to be a shadow at court. Maybe he wanted to replace House D gar with House garow... especially since everyone agrees Prince Corlis is unfit to rule."
Lion kicked the metal table, and its echo reverberated through the silent room. His eyes burned with intensity as he said: "Stop making up stories from your head! We never asked to be in this position.
The king chose us and trusted us because of our competence, and we remained loyal. We never sought the crown. We..."
He stopped, exhaled sharply, then muttered, "We were never traitors, and we never will be."
Hammer let out a short, dull laugh, devoid of joy. Then he said as he turned his back: "I've heard that many times... It seems our conversation has reached its end. Let's try another way."
Lion lifted his head defiantly, his voice dripping with disdain: "If you're looking for the truth, I've already spoken it. But if you're looking to fabricate one that suits you, do whatever you please."
Hammer turned again and stared at him with deadly coldness: "Let's see if the rest of your family has your same resilience."
Lion jolted in his chair, his entire body tense with rage. He shouted, his voice nearly shaking the walls: "Hammer, you bastard... Leave them out of this! They have nothing to do with any of it! You're making a grave mistake you'll regret... Why are you so fixated on this narrative? Could it be... are you also allied with vortex?"
The sentence had barely been completed when Hammer surged forward like a bullet fired from a gun barrel. Only two steps separated him from Lion, but their impact in the room was like a sudden earthquake.
He raised his right arm in a sharp, swift motion, then delivered a backhanded slap—quick, precise, and without hesitation, as if it had been executed a thousand times before.
His clenched palm crashed against Lion's cheek like a rock smashing fragile glass. A sharp, muted sound rang out—not quite a slap, not quite a punch, but something in between, laced with unforgivable humiliation.
Lion's body swayed for a moment, then fell backward with the chair. He hit the concrete like a discarded object, his shoulder struck first, then his head, then the chair flipped over and scattered.
A faint, strangled groan escaped from his chest, mingling with the clatter of metal on the floor. It was as if his dignity, not just his bones, had been shattered.
Hammer leaned over him, his face devoid of mercy, his eyes like dark ice: "I don't care about your petty conflicts. Not vortex, not the queen, not whoever comes after them. The only thing I care about is security. Stability."
Then he pointed his finger at Lion lying on the ground and said with cold finality: "And anyone who threatens that stability... becomes my enemy."
Lion groaned as he tried to rise, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, yet the fire in his eyes hadn't dimmed.
He sat up with difficulty, the metal chair creaking beneath him as he strained against his restraints. And under the weight of the blow, something else seemed to ignite inside him, not just anger... but resolve.
His voice was hoarse, raspy, but sincere: "So you're not looking for the real culprits... you're just looking for someone to blame who won't cause chaos."
Hammer stood still for a moment, then looked at him with eyes that were no longer merely grey. they were ash, as if something inside had burned out. "Don't test my patience, Lion..." he finally said in a low voice, like the wind before a storm, then turned and began walking toward the door.
But Lion did not remain silent. He continued, his voice shaky but filled with conviction: "If you think silence means submission, then you don't know me… nor do you know Nile. And whether you believe it or not, he won't stay hidden for long. He will come back. And when he does, you will all know who the real traitor is."
Hammer paused at the door, but he didn't turn back. He simply opened it in silence and left without saying a word.
------
Night hadn't fallen yet, but the evening sun was already breaking across the windows of the lower palace, casting faint orange streaks on the stone floor.
In one of the deepest levels, where only those who believe that truth can only be wrested through force dare to go, the entire garow family—ten in total, had been placed in a single cell. It was larger than usual, but no less harsh.
The smell was a mixure of sweat, blood, dust… and wasted dignity.
Lion garow sat among his family like a solid wall, despite his wounds and the exhaustion etched on his face. He wasn't defeated, but furious… furious at the situation, at the accusation, at the feeling of helplessness.
His family gathered around him. some injured, some stunned, and his wife Clara was wiping a wound on their eldest son's forehead, looking at her husband with eyes that asked: "For how long?"
Outside the bars, Hammer stood motionless, no gloating on his face, but no mercy either. He watched, not as an executioner, but as a man who knew the burden of responsibility, even when the means were painful.
Lion raised his eyes and called out in a low but firm voice: "How long has it been, Hammer? Five hours? Ten? How long will you keep an entire family imprisoned?"
Hammer replied without changing his tone: "It seems you still don't understand your situation, sir. garow. If it's proven that you were aware of Nile's actions, your fate will be death… when the picture is complete…"
Lion interrupted with bitter sarcasm: "The picture? You're not looking for a picture of truth anymore… you're crafting one that suits your desires."
Hammer paused, then approached the iron door. He looked directly at Lion and said, with a coldness that still carried sincerity: "I'm not against you, Lion. Nor against your family. But what happened… it will shake the kingdom to its core. If I don't act, someone else will, and they'll do it worse."
Lion shook his head and replied, his tone weary but sharp: "I know, Hammer… I know you're not vortex. But you've become his tool. Every minute you spend on this floor takes you one step further from the justice you claim to uphold."
Hammer slowly shook his head, as if he'd heard such words a thousand times, but didn't reply directly. Then he added calmly: "You see injustice. I see danger. And when visions differ… the kingdom always pays the price."
They both fell silent. A pause heavier than words. Then Hammer turned and ordered the guards without looking back: "Watch their breathing. I don't want a single corpse tonight."